Eskom probe to start on July 27

THE ACTING chairperson of the portfolio committee on public enterprises will tomorrow sift through documents that have been received by MPs in the probe into Eskom.

This will determine the amount of information that has been received by MPs.

Zukiswa Rantho said yesterday she would spend tomorrow going through the documents after the committee sent out letters to the witnesses.

The committee had drafted the list of witnesses at its last meeting in June.

Rantho said the documents would help shape some of the committee’s discussions when it convenes later this month. She said they had set July 27 for the first meeting to begin with the investigation into Eskom.

The committee drew up a list of several witnesses who would be able to shed light on some of the decisions taken by Eskom over the last few years.

MPs have expressed concern about some of the issues affecting the power utility. Eskom has been under stern criticism over its handling of its internal affairs.

The standing committee on public accounts (Scopa) hauled it over the coals regarding the PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) report into coal contracts with the Guptas.

The contract is valued at more than R4.5 billion and was criticised by PwC as flawed.

Scopa wasn’t the only committee that was concerned about the state of affairs at Eskom. The public enterprises committee also raised serious concern about its problems and the way it rehired Brian Molefe as chief executive.

The Molefe matter was pending in the courts. MPs had been alarmed after Eskom had initially paid Molefe R30 million in a pension payout.

The offer was rejected by Public Enterprises Minister Lynne Brown, and Molefe’s reappointment was thrown out by the cabinet.

This followed the intervention of the interministerial task team set up by President Jacob Zuma to resolve the matter.

Eskom is one of several state-owned entities that have been affected by state capture.

Zuma has promised to set up a commission of inquiry into state capture, and the ANC agreed to this at its policy conference in Nasrec last week.